In the May issue of Vanity Fair, there was a telling exchange between its cover star Madonna –- resplendent in leotard and black knee–length boots –- and her interviewer, Rich Cohen.
They were talking about David Banda, the child adopted by Madonna in Malawi in 2006. Understandably, Madonna is gushing about her adopted son and everything that he “represents”. And what is that, exactly? Cohen explains: baby David is a “living totem of life as it was lived before machines”.
In other words, he’s a simple, wide–eyed, primitive being who helps to remind Madonna about what is really important in life as she jets from one photo–shoot and session recording to another. Cohen compares David to Pocahontas, “the beautiful Indian girl found in wild America”, and says that for “bringing this boy into her house and giving him everything”, Madonna has got “something in return”: a child who symbolises a wilder, more earthy, gritty way of life, who comes from a time “before machines”.
Madonna has never done things by half. Where most celebrities wear a plastic wristband to show how much they care for poor African babies, Madonna goes a step further and adopts one. An African baby has become the latest celebrity accessory; indeed, one might argue that having a black baby is the new black.
Madonna does not only want her own little black baby to remind her of the simplicity of life -– she also seems keen to save the whole of Africa. As one British commentator put it, she is treating the entire continent as “a little orphan that needs adopting”.
Her charity -– or what she refers to as her “big, big project” -– is tellingly called Raising Malawi. “For the last few years -– now that I have children and now that I have what I consider to be a better perspective on life -– I have felt responsible for the children of the world”, says Madonna.
Time magazine certainly seems confident that Madonna can “save” and “raise” Malawi. In a feature on Madonna’s charity, Time recently said that Malawi “has four things in abundance: AIDS, malaria, drought and tobacco (its major crop)… But that’s about to change. Malawi is about to be hit by a force that has thrown much more robust countries for a loop. Her name is Madonna.”
Are YOU an African country ravaged by Aids and parched by drought? Fear not! Simply call Madonna! This fabulously wealthy white women from the West will solve all of your problems with a few fleeting visits, some looks of pained concern for the paparazzi, and a couple of million quid in donations…
There is something creepily colonialist in Madonna’s attitude to Africa. First we had the White Man’s Burden -– now we have the White Madonna’s Burden. More and more celebrities are treating Africa as a wide-eyed child that needs a Hollywood hug -– or as a wicked devil that needs a Hollywood hammering.
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have treated Africa like their own personal playground. In a shocking instance of what I have termed “celebrity colonialism”, they effectively took over Namibia in May 2006 because Ms Jolie wanted to give birth to her daughter, Shiloh Nouvel, in “the cradle of humankind” away from the clicking cameras of Western paps.
In cahoots with the Namibian authorities, Brad and Angelina -– or “Brangelina”, to use celeb–speak -– had a no–fly zone enforced over part of the country. The beach resort in Langstrand, Western Namibia, where they were staying, was sealed off with security cordons and protected by armed guards. Non–Namibian journalists had to seek permission to enter Namibia from both Brangelina and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
Phil ya Nangoloh of Namibia’s National Society for Human Rights said: “They effectively captured the state.” He described Brangelina’s control over journalists’ freedom of movement as a “blatant violation of Namibia’s constitutionally guaranteed freedom of speech”.
Namibia was shut down because Brangelina wanted the birth of their first biological child to be a “special experience”. Just as Madonna has assumed moral responsibility for the whole of Malawi, so Brangelina temporarily occupied vast swathes of Namibia, like absolute monarchs. Entire countries are being made subordinate to the whims and wishes of ridiculously rich celebrities, who, momentarily disillusioned by the high life in LA, want an ego-boosting experience in “pre–machines” Africa.
When celebs are not treating Africa as a cute child that must be saved, they’re treating it as a disobedient boy who should be punished.
For example, celebrity activism over Darfur has done a great deal to mislead Westerners into believing that this terrible and complex conflict is a simple morality play in which “evil men” (Khartoum) are attacking “innocent men” (the rebel forces). George Clooney has said of Darfur: “It’s not a political issue. There is only right and wrong.”
Fran Healy, lead singer of the British pop group Travis, who visited Darfur on behalf of Save the Children, says: “Africa is a very complex place, but the Darfur crisis is quite simple. The conflict is essentially the Arabs against the Africans. It’s all tied up in various battles over things like oil and gold.”
The celebs’ depoliticisation of Darfur has worryingly chauvinistic, possibly even racist undertones. As Mahmood Mamdani of Colombia University in America has argued, in treating Darfur as “a place without history and without politics”, celebrities and others clearly give “the implication that the motivation of the perpetrators lies in biology (‘race’) and, if not that, certainly in ‘culture’”.
Indeed, some celebs are so concerned about corruption in Africa, and about the seeming inability of bovine Africans to overcome their biological instincts to massacre each other, that they have decided to speak on all of Africa’s behalf. Bono, the lead singer of U2, who has done perhaps more than any other celeb to convince the world that Africa is a continent of starving, cute, corrupt, demented children, once declared: “‘I represent a lot of people [in Africa] who have no voice at all… They haven’t asked me to represent them. It’s cheeky but I hope they’re glad I do.”
There is something Kiplingesque in this celebrity swarming of Africa. Kipling branded colonial subjects on the dark continent as “half–devil and half–child” –- and today that old poisonous prejudice finds expression in the celebrity view of Africa as a child that must be adopted (Malawi) or as a devil that must be punished (Sudan). Africans once resisted the armies of colonialism; now they should consider resisting the armies of celebrities, camera crews, make-up artists and hairstylists who are seeking to turn Africa into a stage for celebrity expressions of cheap moral bombast.
I can’t agree with you more! But how come the biggest celebcolonialist i.e oprah (I dint trust the meat in Africa ) didn’t make the cut?
I hope that the child can grow up to be a normal adult and not realise that it is seen as a celeb experiment of some sort.
Why do third world countries allow themselves to be abused like this?
S,o Madonna adopts and gives a child an opportunity at life that it would not have had, starts a charity – and you write an article slating her for it. So what if these celebrities are attention grabbing – they do more to help than you and me do – Seriously, Africa needs their cash. We should offer them as much attention as they demand in order to continue receiving funds from them. Sure Bono, madonna and that live 8 dude are pains in the ass – but as long as they are sending money, trying to actually help the continent (even if it is for the attention) who cares? To be honest, i´m sick of people trying to actually help Africa with their own cash and then having to hear other people slam them for it.
Are you aware of who Father Trevor Huddleston is?
Or do you just your facts and thesis off the TV with a beer in your hand?
Let alone your strange view that anyone White who complains about Darfur is racist, apparenly unaware of the large collection of massacres of Black Africans by Arab Mulims, with repeated evidence of a deliberate use of Rape “to make Black Women have White/Pale/ Arab babies.”
Sometimes actually stated to the victim whilst they are being raped.
And do you have any idea of the history of Arabic involvement with Africa, or are you completely ignorant of how Zanzibar made its money (Slavery and Ivory) before Ameria had even bee discovered and whilst the West were still living in Wattle and daub houses and still didn’t know what a triangular sail was for.?
Whiteys, just butt out and leave Africa to sort out its own mess. (And, boy, have they ever got more than a lifetime’s supply of mess to sort out!) Because, if you butt in and try to do your small bit, you’ll be rounded on by cynics and scoffers like O’Neill who will make you, in the words of Kipling, “reap his old reward: the blame of those ye better,the hate of those ye guard”.
Rather do absolutely nothing. Leave Africa to the Africans.
My thoughts exactly. Madonna is human refuse, Wal mart/Rudyard Kipling meets Top Shop but with poorer clothing and a lower IQ. The inteview you refer to was grotesquely fawning and Madonna’s quote to Oprah calling David Banda’s father ‘a simple man from a village’ is just another argument for her to go the way of the spandex jock strap wearing tone deaf DoDo.
Thank heavens that nannuis are raising her kids effectively giving them a shot at intelligence.
So much double standards, the whole world (justly) ganged up against SA and if celebs did not join in they were condemned. Now it is Blacks who are the baddies and the cry is for Africa to sort itself out, please advise when the will to assist was made illegal.
How about doing the RIGHT thing, not the Black or White thing – condemn injustice and do your thing (yes even helping one kid is better than doing nothing) wherever it occours.
Brent
@ Jon
I think in my ‘harder’ moments i agree with you.
Stop all aid of any description to Africa. It is not doing any good in any case, it is making things worse and creating a whole entitlement culture. We are sustaining (and actually expanding) the unsustainable.
It is when i realise how many millions would die, that i struggle to want to carry this through.
The ultimate catch 22.
Shame Africa can’t show a little more gratitude in the meantime!
The problem is not shortage of cash. If you read “Beware the Alchemists” or any basics on economics you will know that an increase of cash without an increase of commodities will only put the cost of living up for everyone ie the poor get poorer.
However awaremess of the true problems in Africa DOES need to be raised and maybe the Angelina’s and Madonna’s can do that. I don’t believe it’s entirely selfish or attention seeking on their part but then again I don’t believe their approach is strictly for the best but at least they ARE trying to do something. I too would like to do something but when you get to grips with the size of the problems you begin to feel somewhat minute
What bothers me the most is that David Banda’s father is still alive. Could Madonna not have made a donation to his family so that they could afford to raise him themselves?
It reminds me of the Aboriginal children in Australia being made to live with white families in order to better their existence.
Which part of Darfur is not about right and wrong? Even with Mamdani’s oh-so-trendy aphoristic approach to research, that’s the bottom line, like it or not.
This just shows how history always repeats itself. Racism does not go away, colonialism has not gone away. It just changes form. Like Mandela said just when you think you are at the top of the mountain, you realize that there are many more mountains to climb. It will take a while to undo the racist, colonialist mentality from the west.
With all due respect to hyperbole – isn’t it all a bit silly to put the vain and naive idealism of celebrities on the same plane with the grim historical realities of racism and imperialism? Worse yet: such comparisons make a mockery of the victims of the horrors associated with actual racism and imperialism.
What an ass you are. Someone is trying to help children instead of bombing them and you look down your so so enlightened nose at them. Well the world could use more Madonnas and less snotty reporters.
I think it is incumbent upon us as humans to do what we can, whenever we can. Adopting a child is one of the most personal, one of the most fundamental ways to make the world a better place. One on One. The commitment should be lauded – Period. I would say if you have an empty guest bedroom, turn your empty room into an actual home for an actual child. Life goes by quickly. One could spend 5 years pondering endlessly what the proper paint color for a guest room (used once a year, perhaps?) should be, or choose to make it a home for a kid. In a few short years, they will be off and running, you have your guest rooms back – and the child will have the same room in memory as the bedroom of home. Their home. Get out there and do it. And yes, I did it -probably the best thing I will ever do with my life. And I still haven’t decided what color to paint the rooms…
One thing: when Kipling wrote about “half-devil and half-child” in his poem “White Man’s Burden” he was talking about people in the Philippines, not Africa. He didn’t really say much about Africa.
Adopting one child (or a dozen, or a hundred) does about as much good as plugging one tiny hole in a sieve, if you want to make the sieve hold water. Or I could use the “teaching a man to fish vs. giving him a fish” argument. To do any good at all you need to tackle the problem at its source — invest in technology, infrastructure, education, democracy. The least these celebrities could do is use their celeb status to popularize these causes. But I can’t blame them for taking the easy and cheap way out — after all they ARE doing it for the publicity, and judging by most of the comments above it’s working.
Also, when reading the article I’d hoped that these people’s love of “a life before machines” and “the cradle of life” would be met with the torrent of scathing derision it deserves, but no one even commented on that. Perhaps someday we homo sapiens will live up to the “sapiens” part of our name.
hmmm – adopting children is taking the easy way out? I thought it was sacrificing a part of ones life to giving another person at an opportunity at a life. Now thats being a human
Are you aware of who Father Trevor Huddleston is?
But you, Mr.O’Neill, also speak on their behalf without being asked to. That appears to be a general white burden. Being a man of the media yourself, shouldn’t it be more appropriate (and challenging) for you to present a thorough analysis of why do media give these people so much coverage in the first place? That Madonna isn’t a most eloquent or brilliant thinker wouldn’t come as a surprise to most, but bashing her and others like her surfaces as frequently as the latest news on what they are up to. Not to mention that mocking a person for spending her own money on attempts to aleviate what she sees is a disaster is simply in bad taste.
“What conservatives call ‘white guilt’ is empathy. Since they don’t have it, they can’t recognize it”
– Susan from Texas.
Unforunately, her child doesn’t have a prayer of avoiding the media frenzy that will undoubtedly swarm her everywhere she goes.
Nice blog and thanks for the info!